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Catholics favor strict approach for those found guilty of abuse

GALLUP NEWS SERVICE

PRINCETON, NJ -- The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will
convene in Dallas next week to discuss matters facing the church,
most notably the problem of priests' sexual abuse of young people.
A new CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll finds that the vast
majorities of Americans and of Catholics continue to feel the
church has done a bad job handling the problem, and both groups
have grown slightly more critical of the church compared with a
month ago. As the church considers a new policy to deal with
priests who abuse young people, most American Catholics support a
strict approach by the church toward such priests.

The poll, conducted May 28-29, finds 79% of Americans saying the
Catholic Church is doing a bad job of dealing with the problem of
sexual abuse by priests, and only 12% saying it is doing a good
job. The percentage that says the church is handling the situation
badly has increased from 68% in a March 18-20 poll and 73% in an
April 29-May 1 poll.

Catholic Church Doing a Good Job or Bad
Job
Handling Sexual Abuse Committed by Priests:
Among National Adults

Catholics are similarly critical of the church, with 75% saying
it is doing a bad job and just 20% saying it is doing a good job.
The latest numbers suggest that Catholics, too, are becoming
somewhat more critical of its leaders' handling of the situation,
when compared with polls conducted earlier this year. Catholics are
also far more critical of the church now than they were during a
similar controversy in 1993.

Catholic Church Doing a Good Job or Bad
Job
Handling Sexual Abuse Committed by Priests:
Among Catholics

Catholics Support Strict Abuse Policy

When asked about what the church's policy should be in specific
circumstances, most Catholics express support for a very strict
approach to sexual abuse by priests. For example, 77% of Catholics
say a priest who has been found guilty of sexually abusing a young
person in the past should be removed from the priesthood
altogether. Only 18% of Catholics favor allowing the offender to
remain a priest either in a role in which he would not have contact
with parishioners (13%) or remain as a parish priest if he
apologizes and successfully undergoes counseling (5%).

The question of what to do with past abusers, specifically those
found guilty of only one past instance, is a source of disagreement
among the bishops. The church's new policy may allow one-time
abusers to remain priests if they meet certain conditions the
church sets. An April 29-May 1 poll showed Catholics are somewhat
more forgiving toward one-time offenders, but still a majority,
66%, thinks they should not be allowed to continue as priests.
About one in three Catholics, 31%, says a one-time offender should
be allowed to remain a priest in some capacity.

The church is considering adopting a zero-tolerance policy
toward future cases of sexual abuse by priests, dismissing any
priest found guilty of sexual abuse. The poll suggests most
Catholics would support the proposal, as 82% favor a priest's
dismissal from the priesthood if he is found guilty of sexually
abusing a young person in the future, while just 15% support
allowing him to continue as a priest.

Preferred Actions for Priest Guilty of Sexual
Abuse

Eighty-seven percent of Catholics would also favor the pope
dismissing a bishop or cardinal who knew of abuse but did not
report it, similar to the case of Cardinal Bernard Law of Boston.
Fewer than one in 10 Catholics believes the pope should not remove
such a person as head of a Catholic archdiocese.

Survey Methods

These results are based on telephone interviews with a randomly
selected national sample of 1,003 adults, aged 18 and older,
conducted May 28-29, 2002. For results based on this sample, one
can say with 95% confidence that the maximum error attributable to
sampling and other random effects is ±3%. Results based on
the subsample of 256 Catholics have a maximum error attributable to
sampling of ±7%. In addition to sampling error, question
wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can
introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion
polls.

Overall, do you think the Catholic Church has done a good job
or a bad job in dealing with the problem of sexual abuse committed
by its priests?

Good job

Bad job

No opinion

National Adults

2002 May 28-29

12%

79%

9%

2002 Apr 29-May 1

18

73

9

2002 Mar 18-20

17

68

15

Catholics

2002 May 28-29 ^

20

75

5

2002 Apr 29-May 1

24

70

6

2002 Mar

20

72

8

1993 Aug 3-5

35

53

12

^

BASED ON –256—CATHOLICS

If a Catholic bishop or cardinal knew that a priest had been
sexually abusing young people and had moved the priest to another
parish rather than report him to the police, do you think the Pope
should -- or should not -- remove that bishop or cardinal as head
of that diocese?

BASED ON --256-- CATHOLICS

Yes, should

No, should not

No opinion

2002 May 28-29

87%

9%

4%

2002 Apr 29-May 1

86%

9%

5%

What should the Church do with a priest who has been found
guilty of sexually abusing a young person in the past?
Should the Church -- [ROTATED: remove him from the priesthood
altogether, remove him from any parish or personal contact with any
of the laity, but not dismiss him from the priesthood, or allow him
to remain in a parish or other ministry if he apologizes and
successfully goes through counseling]?

BASED ON --256-- CATHOLICS

Remove altogether

Remove
from parish but do not dismiss

Allow to
remain
in parish

No
opinion

2002 May 28-29

77%

13%

5%

5%

What should the Church do in the future with a priest
who is found guilty of sexually abusing young people? Should the
Church -- [ROTATED: remove him from the priesthood altogether,
remove him from any parish or personal contact with any of the
laity, but not dismiss him from the priesthood, or allow him to
remain in a parish or other ministry if he apologizes and
successfully goes through counseling?]

Slightly more Americans agree (52%) than disagree (45%) that the federal government is responsible for making sure all Americans have healthcare coverage. This balance of views is similar to last year.

Americans' daily self-reports of spending averaged $98 in November, up from $93 in October. The latest figure is the highest average recorded for the month of November since Gallup began tracking consumer spending in 2008.